Electric hair brush



Feb. 1, 1969 J. w. TONE ETAL 3,

ELECTRIC HAIR BRUSH Filed June so, 1966 Sheet of 2 o N w J O m 0 [2D 3'1 O m/ o m 0 m I 0 km I 1 1 i m N N 1 I m N w (0 m m -w 3 v mvNToRs N JOHN w. TONE .2

ED ALBERT E. SIMONJR. K BY WILLIAM D. TAYLOR N 2 ,4 g Y I- l 7 I ATTORNEYS Feb. 18, 1969 J. w. TONE ETAL ELECTRIC HAIR BRUSH INVENTORS JOHN W. TONE ALBERT E. SIMONJR WILLIAM D TAYLOR Filed June 30, 1966 ATTORNgYg United States Patent 8 Claims Int. Cl. A46b 13/02 ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A power operated hair brush having a drive housing with manual grasping means, and a brushing head rotatably mounted on the drive housing, the brushing head including brush bristles positioned therein for extension and retraction through aligned openings in the head as the latter rotates.

This invention relates to improvements in an electric hair brush, and more particularly to a brush having bristles which reciprocate in and out of a rotating drum as shown in US. Reissue Patent No. Re. 25,898 granted to Taylor et al. on Nov. 9, 1965.

The above-mentioned patent describes a power-operated hair brush having a brushing head mounted upon a drive housing by open-ended trunnion plates with the brushing head comprising a rotatable drum through which bristles are automatically extended and retracted.

An object of the present invention is to provide a hair brush having a rotatable drum and retractable bristle construction which minimizes entanglement with the users hair and which prevents hair from wrapping around the rotating brushing head.

A further object of the present invention is to provide for the quick and easy removal of the brushing head a from the power source so that the brushing elements may be conveniently cleaned and replaced thereafter.

In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the rotatable drum member of the brush is provided with circumferentially extending elongated slots; and aligned within each slot is a single resiliently flexible bristle. The bristles are mounted upon brush bars, which in turn are affixed to a scotch yoke mechanism. An eccentrically located reaction shaft, extending from one end of the drive housing, activates the scotch yoke mechanism upon rotation of the brushing head to reciprocate the bristles through the slots of the drum. An end cap engaging the outer end of the brushing head, is held in place by a resiliently expandable retainer spring adapted to grasp the reaction shaft. A protective escutcheon extending beyond the outer end of the brush head surrounds the end cap to prevent hair from becoming wound about the cap and the end of the rotating drum.

The novel features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent to one skilled in the art from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein similar reference characters refer to similar parts and in which:

FIG. 1 is a side view in elevation showing the presently preferred embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the brushing head shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a front end, cross-sectional view taken along lines 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4-6 are cross-sectional views taken through FIG. 2 along respective lines;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of an assembled brushing head removed from the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2; and

FIG. 8 is a partial sectional view of an individual bristle cooperating with the associate slot in the brushing drum of FIG. 1.

As shown in the drawings, the basic construction of the hair brush, designated at 10, is generally the same as the brush shown in the above-mentioned reissue patent and includes a brushing head 12 detachably connected to a housing 14 and driven in rotation by a power source 16 in turn encased in the housing.

Brushing head 12 comprises an outer drum 20 having an inner trunnion plate 22 and an outer trunnion plate 24. Head 12 is releasably supported on the housing 14 for rotation relative thereto by means of a pair of openended trunnions 26 and 28 and is operatively coupled to the power source 16 through a motion transmitting means 30 for imparting reversible rotatory motion to drum 20. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 6, the motion transmitting means 30 comprises a pinion 32 mounted on the output shaft 34 of the motor 16, an idler gear 36 rotatably mounted on the end of the housing, and an internal annular gear 38 secured within the end of the drum 12.

Contained within drum 20 are brush assemblies 40 having bristles 42 mounted on brush bars 44. The brush bars are in turn connected to the drum for rotation therewith by coupling means. In particular, the brush bars are connected to the slotted yokes 46 and have their ends mounted in radial slots 48 in trunnion plates 22 and 24. A reaction element 50, rigidly attached to the housing 14, extends into said drum 12 along a direction offset from the central longitudinal axis of the drum and passes through each of the slotted yokes 46 as shown in FIG. 4 for reciprocating the brush assemblies 40 by scotch yoke action.

In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, the brushing head drum 20 is provided with a plurality of circumferentially extending elongated slots 52 disposed in spaced rows overlying the brush bars. C0- operating with each of these slots is one of the bristles 42 which are made of a suitable plastic, such as polymethane resin, and have a self-sustaining flexible shape.

During manufacture, drum 20 may be made in sections. For example, four longitudinal sections may be joined at parting lines 54 with each section having a smooth edge and a notched edge so that the parting lines lie along a smooth edge abutted by the notched edge of an adjoining section to form slots 52.

When the brushing head 12 is mounted upon drive housing 14, the inner end of drum 20 is rotatably interlocked with the outer periphery of the housing end plate 56 by insertion of projection 58 on the trunnion plate 22 within the sleeve portion 60 of the housing 14 with the opposed shoulder portions of the trunnion plate and sleeve limiting the extent of such insertion and preventing hair from entering between the end of the brushing head and drive housing. In addition, an escutcheon 62 provides a surface projecting beyond the forward end of drum 20 which also prevents hair from tangling about the forward or free end of the brush. Escutcheon 62 overlaps the outer trunnion plate 24 and is held in place by screws 64 embedded in this trunnion plate.

As seen from FIGS. 2 and 3 brushing head 12 may be quickly and easily detached from drive housing 14 by releasing a resiliently expandable retainer spring 66 which is held in a groove 68 in the end of the reaction shaft 50, the shaft itself projecting through outer trunnion plate 24 and into an abutment means comprising an end cap 70, nonrotatably positioned on the end of shaft 50 and carrying the spring 66 on the support means 66'. The end cap is provided with a removable cover plate 72 normally covering the end of shaft 50 and the retainer spring. Removal of the end cap is effected by moving it axially along the shaft 50 in a direction to the left as viewed in FIG. 2. This movement causes the spring 66 to expand as it is forced against the enlarged end 68' of the shaft thus releasing the cap. Thereafter, the entire brushing head 12 is easily removed from the housing 14 by sliding it off the shaft 50.

In FIG. 7 brushing head 12 is shown removed to illustrate how the configuration of the brush assemblies 40 and coupling of the ends of brush bars 44 within the radial slots 48 of the trunnion plates maintains the internal parts of brushing head 12 in operative relationship for convenient replacement upon the housing 14 and the insertion of eccentric shaft 50 within slots in yokes 46. Brushing head 12 can, for example, be made of a noncorrosive material such as nylon plastic permitting it to be thoroughly washed and cleaned through the ample trunnion bearing holes 74 and 76 at the inner and outer ends of drum 20.

When brushing head 12 is assembled upon drive housing 14 as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, motor 32 rotates head 12 and its drum 20 to translate the bristles relative to a head of hair. As drum 20 rotates, bristles 42 are reciprocated into and out of slots 46 in drum 20 to prevent them from becoming entangled in the hair.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 8, a single bristle cooperates with each individual slot. By having a single bristle element, as opposed to set of bristles, extending through each slot, entanglement of the hair with the bristle is reduced to a minimum. A bristle assembly composed of a set of individual bristles held together at their base produces a condition which tends to permit hair to become intertwined in the individual bristles as the brushing head is rotated against the individuals hair and the bristles extended and retracted.

As is also shown in FIGS. 1 and 8, each bristle is aligned with the associated slot in the drum whereby it reciprocates out of and into the slot at a position spaced from the slot ends 52'. With this construction, the bristles may flex, as shown in FIG. 8, in a direction opposite to the direction of rotation of the drum 12. Therefore, any hair that might become wrapped around the bristles is permitted to slide off and will not be pulled into the interior of the drum as it rotates and the bristles are retracted.

In the embodiment of the present invention shown in the drawings, the brushing head is adapted to be rotated in either direction when in use by actuating the reversing switch 78 which in turn effects a reversal of the direction of rotation of the motor power source 16. Accordingly, the bristles are positioned centrally of the ends 52' of the associated slots so that they may flex in either direction. If, on the other hand, the hair brush is constructed with the brushing head adapted to rotate in only one direction, the bristles need only be spaced from the trailing end of the associated slots since the bristles need only flex in this direction.

As another feature of the present invention improving its overall operation and preventing hair from becoming entangled on the bristles and the rotating drum, the bristles are cut to a predetermined length whereby during their reciprocation as the drum 12 rotates, they will only be in an extending position beyond the outer surface of the drum during about 240 of such rotation. This result is produced by having the bristle length such that when the bristles are in their fully retracted position, such as shown at the bottom of FIG. 2, they are disposed at points spaced inwardly of the drums outer surface. By controlling the length of the bristles, the degree of rotation during which they extend beyond the outer surface of the drum may be regulated. In accordance with the teachings of the present invention, this length is made such that the bristles will extend beyond the drums outer surface, from the point of first extension to the point of final retraction, during 240 of drum rotation. During this time, the bristles will be moving from a retracted position to a fully extended position during 120 of drum rotation and Willbe moving from their fully extended position to a position below the drums outer surface during the next 120 of rotation. During the remaining 120 of rotation of the drum for each complete revolution thereof, the bristles will be completely retracted below the outer surface of the drum. For permitting this movement of the bristles below the drums outer surface while still holding the bristles in alignment with their associated slots, the drums inner surface is provided with axially extending ribs 80 surrounding each axial row of slots. Accordingly, the bristles, although below the outer surface of the drum during 120 of rotation of the latter, are still retained in alignment with the slots.

With this construction, hair cannot be pulled by any particular bristle in a complete revolution about the drum 12. Therefore, entanglement of the individuals hair as might otherwise be caused by the hair wrapping completely around the brushing head is avoided.

Having described the presently preferred construction of the hair brush, it is to be understood that various changes thereto may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the following claims.

We claim:

1. A power operated hair brush comprising:

(a) a drive housing;

(b) manual grasping means upon said housing;

() a brushing head comprising:

( l) a drum having an outer surface of revolution;

(2) at least one axially, extending row of slots in said outer surface with each of said slots having its longer axis extending in a direction circumferentially of said outer surface;

(3) brush assembly means disposed within said drum and having a single bristle aligned with each of said slots for extension and retraction therethrough; and

(4) coupling means mounting said brush assembly means within said drum for rotation therewith;

(d) mounting means for rotatably mounting said brushing head upon said drive housing;

(6) a source of rotation in said drive housing;

(f) motion transmitting means connecting said drum to said drive housing for rotating said drum about its longitudinal axis; and

(g) means for radially reciprocating said brush assembly means relative to said drum and the bristles thereof through the slots in said drum as the latter rotates.

2. A power operated hair brush according to claim 1 wherein:

(a) said brushing head has a plurality of spaced axially extending rows of slots; and

(b) a single bristle aligned with each of said slots of each row.

3. A power operated hair brush according to claim 2 wherein:

(a) each of said bristles is constructed of flexible material; and

(b) each of said bristles is aligned with the associated slot in the drum for extension therethrough at a point spaced from the end thereof which trails during rotation of said drum.

4. A power operated hair brush according to claim 3 wherein:

(a) radial movement of said bristles is correlated with the rotation of said drum whereby said bristles are in a position extending outwardly of the drums outer surface during about 240 of rotation of the latter for each single revolution thereof.

5. A power operated hair brush according to claim 3 wherein:

(a) said means for radially reciprocating said brush assembly means includes;

(1) a reaction element rigidly secured at one end to said housing and extending within said drum along a direction off-set from the longitudinal axis thereof and in operative engagement with said brush assembly means for moving a row of bristles radially away from said axis during 180 of drum rotation and radially toward said axis during the remaining 180 of drum rotation during each single revolution thereof; and

(b) the length of each bristle is such that during radial reciprocation thereof it remains extended outwardly of the drums outer surface during about 240 of rotation of the latter.

6. A power operated hair brush according to claim 5 further including:

(a) abutment means connected to the other end of said reaction element at a position remote from the outer surface of revolution of said drum and extending axially outwardly of the end of the drum remote from said drive housing for axially retaining said brushing head upons said drive housing; and

(b) an escutcheon fixed to the end of said brushing head remote from said drive housing and extending axially outwardly thereof in spaced, circumferentially surrounding relationship with respect to said abutment means.

7. A power operated hair brush comprising:

(a) a drive housing;

(b) manual grasping means upon said housing;

(0) a brushing head comprising:

(1) a drum having an outer surface of revolution,

(2) a plurality of axially extending rows of slots in said outer surface with each of said slots having its longer axis extending in a direction circumferentially of said outer surface,

(3) a brush assembly means disposed within said drum and having a single flexible bristle aligned with each of said slots for extension and retraction therethough at a point spaced from the end thereof which trails during rotation of said drum, said brush assembly means further including diametrically opposed brush bars to which said bristles are attached, said brush bars being connected by slotted yokes having a diametric length which permits each of said bristles on one of said brush bars to extend a maximum distance through the associated slot in one side of said drum while each of the bristles on the diametrically opposite brush bar are retracted within said drum but still inserted within the associated slot, and

(4) coupling means mounting said brush assembly means within said drum for rotation therewith;

(d) trunnion means for rotatably mounting said brushing head upon said housing and comprising:

(1) an inner and outer trunnion shaft, and

(2) trunnion plates at the ends of said drum having trunnion bearing holes for engaging said trunnion shafts;

(e) a source of rotation in said drive housing;

(f) motion transmitting means connecting said drum to said drive housing for rotating said drum about a predetermined axis;

(g) a reaction element comprising an extension shaft rigidly secured at one end to said housing and eccentrically mounted within said drum parallel to said predetermined axis and extending through the slots of said yokes for reciprocating said brush assembly means by scotch yoke action as said drum rotates; and

(h) abutment means connected to the other end of said reaction element for axially retaining said brushing head upon said drive housing and trunnion means.

8. A power operated hair brush according to claim 7 wherein (a) the length of each bristle is such that during radial reciprocation thereof it remains extended outwardly of the drums outer surface during about 240 of rotation of the latter.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 10/1965 Taylor et al. 1523 12/1938 Marogg 15186 9/1955 Maynard 15186 2/ 1962 Mitchell 1523 EDWARD L. ROBERTS, Primary Examiner. 

